Intervarsity and CUP

A college friend of mine posted this article from the Chicago Tribune on facebook earlier today. (PLEASE go read it...it is worth the 5 minutes!) It talks about the Chicago Urban Program through Intervarsity in which students spend their spring break volunteering on the west side of Chicago in the underserved neighborhood of Austin. I participated in this weeklong program when I was a senior at NU, and it was one of the most rewarding things I have ever done with a spring break. My volunteer job was working with an afterschool program and helping kids with homework. However, I probably got more out of the program than the people I went to "help." It was just such a different lifestyle, even though I was just an "L" ride away from NU. These kids (and their families) had to deal with such economic and social injustice. But there was hope in the community too, because people knew that Jesus' love was there and His servants were working to better the community. If you want to know more about it (or see my pictures) feel free to send me an email or give me a call. Also, if you want to donate to Intervarsity (or CUP specifically), I can help you with that too. It is super simple and can be done with a credit card online.

Just thought I'd share the article because the experience meant so much to me; it was nice to see the program get the attention it deserves, because the CUP volunteers and the full time ministries in Austin truly have transformed the community. (And several of the people mentioned in the article are good friends of mine, including Lauren Robinson who went to CUP when I did, Kate Bell, and Sandra VanOpstal who now runs CUP. It's exciting when you know the people who the quotes are from!)